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Thursday, 13 August 2015 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
By Shehana Dain
The Government yesterday announced the launch of Emergence Response Project which aims to deploy nearly 300 ambulances countrywide for better healthcare service.
The first phase of the project is funded by the Indian Government to the tune of $ 7.5 million for the deployment of 88 ambulances for Western and Southern Provinces.
The initiative will be rolled out from early next year with the signing of the MoU on 1 January 2016. The services will be provided by an Indian Company GVK EMRI (Emergency Management and Research Institute) a company that provides a similar service that exists in over 17 states in India. The company is well reputed for its Public-Private Partnership (PPPs) with the Indian Government in facilitating this service.
The second stage of the project will include 109 ambulances covering Central, Eastern, Uva and Sabaragamuwa Provinces. The third phase will cover the entire country by providing 68 ambulances to the North Central, North Western and Northern Provinces. Moreover the fourth and final phase of the project will be three months after the receipt of funds on 1 January 2017 adding up 32 more ambulances in the Western and Southern Provinces.
This lifesaving socially equitable service was initiated by the Deputy Minister of Policy Planning and Economic Affairs Dr. Harsha de Silva under the guidance of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe during the visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Sri Lanka earlier this year.
Speaking at the launch Indian High Commissioner Y.K Sinha said: “The Government of India has decided to fund the phase one of this project providing emergency ambulance service which will extend throughout the Western and Southern Provinces of Sri Lanka. Phase one is estimated to cost around $7.56 million. We are having discussions with Government of Sri Lanka about the funding of this project.”
Secretary to the Prime Minister Saman Ekanayake said: “When the Indian Prime Minister visited Sri Lanka Indian assistance to set up this emergency care ambulance service in the country was discussed. As a result GVK EMRI which pioneered and implemented this service in India agreed to implement the first phase and train 600 personnel in their training centres in India.”
Ekanayake further stressed: “This would definitely develop the healthcare system in the rural areas of the country. This is a free hospital service which would improve and enhance the countries capacity to meet major incidents accidents and disasters. It would help people suffering from acute illnesses like emergency child birth, accidents and disasters within the first 30 minutes of such an event.”
Minister of Health and Indigenous Medicine D.M.R.B Dissanayake said: “Our healthcare sector is doing very well, but we are lacking in providing pre-hospital care; to improve the healthcare sector we need to embark upon pre- hospital care. This will have a huge impact on the healthcare delivery system in Sri Lanka.”
– Pix by Sameera Wijesinghe
